Bed ob seat spring structure



. A. OLDFIELD. BED 0R SEAT SPRING STRUCTURE. APPLICATION FILED Aue.25. 1919.

Patented Nov. 18, 1919.

ALBERT OLDFIELD, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO EDMUND W.

BIN GLE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

BED OR SEAT SPRING STRUCTURE.

Application filed August 25, 1919.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT OLDFIELD, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bed or Seat Spring Structures, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The purpose of this invention is to provide an improved construction of bed spring or seat spring or the like particularly in respect to the connector employed for the spring element. It consists in the elements and features of construction shown and described as indicated by the claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of the bed spring showing four of a total larger number of vertically compressible springs with connectors in which the present invention is embodied.

Fig. 2 is a large detail view showing portions of the main'springs, tie springs and connectors in the relative position occupied in the completed structure.

Fig. 3 is a detail view showing the connector in the position of being entered into engagement with the tie spring.

Fig. 4 is an end View of the tie spring and the connector engaging it, being sectioned at line 44 on 2.

This invention is designed to overcome certain defects and difficulties existing in the most familiar forms of connectors and tie springs, that is, the familiar form of bed spring which comprises vertically 10 ad carrying springs assembled in horizontal arrangement, tied together at their upper coils by relatively small coil springs which are connected to the main spring by devices and means upon which the following invention is designed to improve.

In the drawings the vertically yielding main springs, which will be understood to be helical coils, are seen at l. Relatively small helical tie springs, 2, are shown interlocked with each other in the familiar manner as seen in Fig. 1, for engaging these tie springs with the terminal coil, or any coil, of the ver-' tically yielding main spring. This invention employs connectors, 4, each consisting of a wire member folded upon itself to form a loop at 4 the two limbs running from the Specification of Letters Patent.

the plane Patented Nov. 18, 1919.

Serial No. 319,787.

loop being bent both in the same direction in of the loop to form an inner bent member, 4", and an outer bent member, 4. When the parts of the bed spring member are ready to be assembled, the interlocked tie springs, 2, 2, being interlocked with each other, the Vertically yielding springs being assembled in a horizontal group, the connection of the tie springs with the main springs is effected by first engaging the connector by its loop, 4, with a coil of the main spring, as seen clearly in Fig. 2, and then swinging the connector in the plane of the loop, that is, in a vertical plane, entering the two ends in the coil of the tie spring and continuing to turn in the vertical plane until the inner bent member which constitutes a hook, engages with one of'the coils of the tie spring. In the construction shown, the outer bent member, as well as the inner one is bent to form a return-bend, making it also a hook, so that both of these members are hook members and engage with consecutive coils of the spring as shown in Fig. 2; and this is the preferred construction; although it is not essential for the operation of the device nor in order to cause it to embody the invention, that more than one of these bent members should be bent so far as to form a hook and engage with a coil of the springs. In order to insure the connector from becoming accidentally disengaged from the tie spring, as might happen by therotation of the coil spring itself about its own axis, unscrewing it, so to speak, from the connector, .the terminal coil of the tie spring is contracted in diameter as shown most clearly in Fig. 4, the contraction being suflicient to admit the outer limb, 4, of the connector outside of said contracted terminal coil and inside the next succeeding coil, as seen in Fig. 3; while the inner bent limb or hook of the connector enters at the center of the coil; and the connector being turned to the position shown in Fig. 2, the imier bent member or hook terminal is hooked around the lower side of said contracted terminal coil of the tie spring, as may be understood by referring to Figs. 3 and 4. Preferably for security of engagement and protection against at part of its course sufficiently to admit the outer limb of the connector between it and the next engaging coil of the tie spring, as seen in Figs. 2 and 3, and at 2" in Fig. &, and is less contracted at its extremity as seen at 2" in Fig. 4:; so that while there is room for the bent outer limb of the connector to pass between the contracted coil and the next one at the point, 2 shown in Fig. 4e,there is not room for it to pass thus between the two coils at 2 at the very extremity of the contracted coil, and said terminal portions of said contracted coil thus blockade what would otherwise be a spiral path of escape of said outer limb of the connector from the tie spring, along which escape might occur by the rotation of the tie spring about its axis, as suggested.

The advantage of this construction over any heretofore employed for like purposes that all the connections necessary for engaging the two interlocked tie springs with the four main springs which they are to connect can be elfected by a-single movement for engagement of the connector at its loop with the main spring, and a single turn for engaging it by both its ends as described with the tie spring; whereas, in the forms of the device heretofore employed, the connection is effected by rotating the spirally coiled tie springs about their axes to screw them into engagement with their connectors at one end and then screwing them back again into engagement with the connector at the other end, this operation being repeated with each tie spring, the tie springs are clenched at their ends to prevent their reverse rotation, which would disengage them.

A further advantage'of this device over previous constructions is that the connectors have engagement each with two coils of the tie spring, while in all previous devices only one coil is so engaged; and, finally, that the ends of the connector both extend downwardly, and by no possibility can be rotated or turned so as to extend upwardly, and thereby is avoided any danger of these ends protruding so as to engage the bedding and cause it to be torn.

I claim:

1. In a spring bed or seat in combination with vertically yielding, load-supporting springs assembled in horizontal order,

relatively small coiled tie springs connecting adjacent main springs, and connectors for connecting the tie springs with the main springs, consisting each of a wire member folded upon itself to form a loop, the two limbs running from the loop being bent both in the same direction in the plane of the loop to form bends one within the other,

the inner bend being suiiicieut to form a hook for engaging between two consecutive coils of the tie spring.

In the construction defined in claim 1 foregoing, both limbs running from the loop being bent suiiicientl'y to form hooks, said hooks being spaced apart in'the plane of the loop for engaging consecutive coils of the tie spring.

3. 1n the construction defined in claim 1 foregoing, the terminal coil of the tie spring being contracted in diameter to permit the outer limb of the loop to be entered outside the said contracted coil and inside the next coil of the tie spring.

in the construction defined in claim 1 foregoing, the terminal coil of the tie spring being contracted in diameter, said contraction at a point back of the extremity ofsa-id terminal coil being sufficient to admit the outer limb of the loop between said terminal coil and the next coil, said contraction at the extremity of said cont- 'acted coil being less than sufficient to similarly admit said limb of the loop; whereby said'termi nal of the contracted coil of the tie spring blockades the spiral or circular path by which said limb of the loop might escape from between said terminal coil and the next coil by rotation of the tie spring about its axis.

5. In a spring bed or seat structure, a connector for the spring elements consisting'of a wire member folded upon itself to form a loop, the two limbs running from the loop being bent both in the same direction in the plane of the loop to form re spectively an inner and an outer hook terminal.

' In testimony whereof, my hand at Chicago, Illinois,

of August, 1919.

ALBERT OLDFIELD.

Ihave hereunto set this 23rd day 

